A few seasons ago, many lamented (read: celebrated) the death of the skinny suit. One of the relics of the #menswear era, was the rakish suit that erred far too much to the side of uncomfortably skinny. Fast forward to today, suits have been enlarged to a more sweeping and comfortable degree, and come readily wearable in a diverse range of colours, patterns, and materials. And September has seen the full range. 

Blown-out shoulders, ballooned pants, and a chunky derby, boot, or even sneaker to match. It’s the new standard for suiting, and one that has shown particular staying power, now seeing those tried and tested proportions take shape in new styles and loud patterns. Even now, suits are still adapting and evolving to meet our weird and wonderful ways of getting dressed, and this season’s spring/summer 2024 shows have championed the suit once again. 

Fashion month is when our favourite trends tend to spike—as well as some of our least favourite—but thankfully the enlarged and motley suit is in the former camp. From front row, to exclusive after parties, to roaming the streets, the suit is again the uniform of the well-to-do—now it just looks a little different. 

Boss and Bottega Veneta. Image credits: GoRunway.com

On the runway, at Boss, it was the new ‘corpcore’ that the German label championed. Boss put big suits, with bigger shoulders right the way through. Low-lying lapels that stretched well below the naval, with the overcoats to match. Pants were wider too, to achieve that desired breeziness that the larger cut delivers when in motion. At Bottega Veneta, suiting was more rigid and angular. Rather than being breezy, it was structured and with stature but with a touch of shape in the sides, giving a more interesting feel. 

Helmut Lang and Luar also had their say on the suit. Image credits: GoRunway.com

But, it’s not just the runway where we’re seeing even more suit. The suit is not reinventing itself, rather reestablishing. This is also not the return of the three-sizes-too-big look that graced many a Draft Class for the NBA and the NFL in the early noughties. Nor is it the return of the burgundy blazer and chino debacle that had menswear in a chokehold more recently. 

No, this is the return of something more considered. These suits are deftly enlarged to still maintain their fashionable edge, as well as being woven in brighter coloured and more interesting fabrics. The suit again becomes the plaything of the fashionably minded, as buttons are moved around, added, or displaced in favour of pushing the boundaries of what constitutes a suit. 

Today they’ve found even more graceful diversity of form, colour, and material. The statement suit is still going strong; making it the perfect look for the street style appearance. Tailored to suit every sort of event, from formal to casual, there is a suit-based look for every season and place. 

Image credits: Getty Images 

Even at Saint Laurent, normally so razor-sharp with its dimensions, guests embrace something a little more broad. Austin Butler channelled a version of his go-to uniform, with wide-cut pinstripe pants, and a magnificent, sweeping coat. The statement suit does not always demand colour, it can say more than it needs to in monochrome, albeit without a shirt underneath. 

Image credits: Getty Images 

Borrowing from Butler was girlfriend Kaia Gerber, showing that statement suits weren’t limited to the men at fashion month. Gerber’s take was very much in line with Butler’s MO, slightly oversized with a blouse underneath worn like one of Butler’s many open-collar shirts—collar splayed out over the lapel. It was a little gangster, it was a little ’70s, and it was another great looking suit. 

Image credits: Getty Images 

Robert Pattinson, meandering his way to the Dior show in Paris wore an unconstructed suit in beige wool and mohair. Sleeves long, pants absorbing the loafers below, and shirt untucked. A summer-ready appropriation of the enlarged suit if ever we’ve seen it.

Image credits: Getty Images 

Of course, statement suits aren’t defined solely by size. Colour is another obvious avenue that has seen the suited September take off. From Hayley Williams, in her bright green iteration, and then Usher, recently announced as halftime entertainment for the next Super Bowl, in the playful polka dots of Marni. Straying from the accepted codes of the suiting colour wheel is an experiment, but when pulled off, the results speak for themselves.

Image credits: Getty Images 

Out of everyone, Cole Sprouse may have been the perhaps the most laid-back embracer of the bigger suit. Proportions were enlarged in every sense for Sprouse's appearance at the JW Anderson show. Granted, rather than an out-and-out suit, it was jeans and a blazer, but this just shows how the oversized look can extend to the smart casual staple, jeans-and-a-blazer uniform—and work.

Image credits: Getty Images 

Even at the NSYNC reunion, the breadth of the suiting world was on show. Lashings of blue, teal, navy, and grey. Double-breasted, to single, fuzzy boucle on Justin Timberlake, to the herringbone twill on Lance Bass. We’ll say it again, September really is the month of the suit.

Whether by size, colour, or vibe, the big suit is enjoying its big moment. Tailoring, once the stuffy and unapproachable world of the older class, is democratised for all occasions and seasons. In summer, go large, go bright, and go breezy, and in winter, pull it back, maybe swap the linen for a thicker wool twill. Something with structure. If the month of September has taught you anything, it’s that yes, suits are getting harder, and harder to define, but wherever your definition falls, it’s never been a better time to be in one.

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